Music News LIVE: From Dawson to Diplo

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Today already we've seen rapper Chris Brown and Soulja Boy make plans to go toe-to-toe in the boxing ring (scroll down).

Now Aussie psychedelic-disco-rocker Kevin Parker will use the time he's gained from a Tame Impala hiatus this year, to hone his DJing skills ahead of another battle of the decks against producer Mark Ronson.

Mark Ronson v Kevin Parker; a contest that has previously taken place at Glastonbury festival and Mexico City’s Corona Capita, will now return for third major round at the Governors Ball festival in New York in June.

Tool, Chance the Rapper, Phoenix and Childish Gambino are also on the bill on the weekend of 2-4 June at Randall's Island Park.

But whose corner, if any, will New York local Lady Gaga be in?  The DJ duo collaborated on her track 2016 track Perfect Illusion.

Maybe Gaga can referee it?  Let's have a good clean set please guys.

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Apparently these days the smart-phone selfie pic with your favourite rock star has rendered the humble autograph redundant...or so we heard.

But alas, it was not always thus, not in the days of the Beatles.

And that's why an old newspaper picture with autographs of the fab four that were forged by the 'mischievous' John Lennon has sold at auction in his hometown Liverpool for £2,000.

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Ellen Degeneres has explained her decision to drop gospel star Kim Burrell from her chat show following the singer's comments calling homosexuality "perverted".

Speaking on her show, which will be broadcast tonight, Ellen said: "She said some very not nice things about homosexuals so I didn't feel that was good of me to have her on the show to give her a platform after she's saying things about me."

Burrell was due to perform a track with Pharrell Williams, taken from the forthcoming movie Hidden Figures.

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Pharrell replied: "There's no space, there's no room for any kind of prejudice in 2017 and moving on. There's no room.

"She's a fantastic singer, I love her, just like I love everybody else and we all got to get used to that." 

"We all have to get used to everyone's differences and understand that this is a big, gigantic, beautiful, colourful world and it only works with inclusion and empathy. It only works that way."

He added: "Live and let live. Love and let love."

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Radio 1Copyright: Radio 1

Scottish band Twin Atlantic treated Radio 1's Clara Amfo to the first Live Lounge performance of this year a wee while ago.

The Weegie rockers performed their own track You Are The Devil, as well as a cover of Kings of Leon's Waste A Moment and you can watch a snippet of that performance below.

The Radio 1 team seem somewhat smitten by the Scots judging by the look of that tweet.

As do you some of you out there, come to think of it.

But is it as good as The 1975's cover of One Direction below, which was deemed the best LL performance of last year at the 2016 BBC Music Awards?

Twin Atlantic for this year's award?  It's a marathon folks, not a sprint.

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A previously unheard song by late singer Elliott Smith is to make up the 20th anniversary re-release of his album’s Either/Or.

The remaster 12-track album remastered includes a new studio version of I Figured You Out, a song he originally wrote for Mary Lou Lord.

Smith, who suffered from alcohol and drug abuse died in 2003, aged 34, from two stab wounds to the chest.

It was initially reported as a suicide but post-mortem evidence were inconclusive as to whether the wounds were self-inflicted.

You can hear it below.

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Now here's a warning before you view this next entry and potentially ruin your lunch.  You cannot un-see the following images.

They feature Eastenders actor Danny Dyer transforming into his friend, the late soul singer Amy Winehouse, as he battles Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood on Lip Sync Battle UK.

The show airs on Friday on Channel 5 and will see the actor also channel his inner Tom & Serge as he takes on a Kasabian banger.

Read more.

But remember, we did warn you.

Guy Levy / Channel 5Copyright: Guy Levy / Channel 5

While music streaming saw a massive surge in 2016, the dominant force in how we consume music is still physical (scroll back down to read why Bradley Walsh finished the year as the number one debut artist).

According to the annual report by the ERA (Entertainment Retailers Association), physical sales of CDs dropped by 7.3% from £512.8m in 2015 to £475.4m last year.

Streaming has seen a huge leap of more than 65% to £418.5 at the coast to downloads which have dropped sharply by nearly 27% to £214.6m.

Earlier this week, we told you how vinyl sales had soared in 2016 to the highest they've been n 25 years.

Entertainment correspondent David Sillito went to one famous record shop to find out exactly what is driving the retro craze.

Radio 1Copyright: Radio 1

Earlier this week singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran sent us a cryptic clue about some potential new music in the form of a simple ÷ sign.  Other than learning that the symbol is known as an obelus, we didn't learn very much else.

But that's all about to change as now we have learned for sure that Ed will co-host the Radio 1 brekkie show tomorrow with Scott Mills.

The station tweeted: BIG BIG NEWS! @edsheeran co-hosts the show FRIDAY 7AM.

Go on Ed, get the guitar out...

Hip-hop bluesman Rag 'N' Bone Man takes second place in the BBC's Sound of 2017 list.

The Brighton singer is due to release his debut album and his single Human charted at number two last year.

Speaking to Radio 1's Huw Stephens, the singer - whose real name is Rory Graham, said: "That is crazy, it means so much to me at this point.

"I've been in it for a long time and I've worked hard and the fact that I'm getting recognition and getting to a wider audience is making me smile."

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In a genius casting decision, Dawson’s Creek star James Van Der Beek is apparently set to play DJ and producer Diplo in a new TV series.

Anyone one who saw his short performance as the Major Lazer star in a promo video for A Mad Decent Block Party, called Day In The Life Of Diplo, will know what we're talking about.

If you don't mind some swearing, you can check it out on YouTube.

According to US movie website Deadline, a new show with the working title What Would Diplo Do? will see James portray a fictional version of Diplo.

The show will appear on TV channel Viceland and has been described as "Louie meets WorldStarHipHop crossed with This Is Spinal Tap".

James' version of Diplo is also described as a “guy who can bring 60,000 people to their feet… but kind of sucks one-on-one".

WE. ARE. SOLD.

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Not Blossoms, despite what we told you back in December.

In fairness, the Stockport four-piece were at that the time the biggest debut artists of the year. But that was before the end of the year tally threw up a surprise just a fortnight later.

Now, the artist who managed to outsell Zayn, Jack Garrett and, yes Blossoms, was none other that Bradley Walsh.

The actor-turned-gameshow host-turned-crooner's debut Chasing Dreams, a collection of his favourite songs released only at the end of November, sold more than 100,000 copies. 

It was the only debut by a British act in 2016 to go gold and, according to the BPI, physical sales ie. CDs, were responsible for 98.3% of his total sales of 111,650. 

Sony MusicCopyright: Sony Music

The album includes covers of Frank Sinatra's Fly Me to the Moon and Barbra Streisand's What Kind of Fool.

Bradley said: "Well, I never expected that! A gold album, wow! It just goes to show that great songs live forever! I am absolutely thrilled to bits.

"Having outsold the likes of Zayn Malik, Tom Odell etc I am now concentrating on conquering overseas! We start next week with the Isle of Wight!"

You can hear more from Bradley talking about his new album on Radio 2 in November.

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What better way to solve an ongoing beef that to don the gloves and step into the squared circle?

Better still if there's (allegedly) $1m on the line.

That's exactly what US rappers Chris Brown and Soulja Boy will do after signing up for a celebrity boxing match, following a lengthy war of words.

Writing on Instagram, Soulja Boy said: "It's going down! Signed my contract I'm leaving the fight with $1,000,000."

According to the rapper, the bout will take place in March in Las Vegas and in his corner will be one of the sports all-time greats.

"I got the best ever my big bro @floydmayweather training me damn," he added.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Earlier Brown had stoked the flames by posting a latest 'diss' below, alongside the caption "How many more Ls can he take?".

We're guessing Ls means losses...and that my friends, is fighting talk for sure.

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Now it's not unusual to feel fury towards those who have just scorned you and it seems that Sir Thomas Jones is no exception.

Remember when the Welsh superstar was dropped by the BBC as a coach on the singing reality show The Voice?

Well he's now described the move as "their loss" and a "mistake", adding that it showed contestants that even established stars have to cope with rejection.

Sir Tom, 76, has been invited back on the show after ITV bought the rights, previously owned by the Beeb and, speaking at a press launch for the sixth series, he said that he was pleased that ratings went down as a result of him being chopped.

He said: "There's a knock-back right there, at my time of life - to prove to these young singers coming on the show that even I got a knock-back, after all that time.

"Then you've got to think - it's their loss. I knew what the public felt because of the feedback I had."

Prrrrr, saucer of milk over there for the What's New Pussycat singer.

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Morning all and welcome back to another edition of Music News LIVE in 2017.  Still sounds weird, right?

The short first working week of the year is nearly over already for most of us.

So hang in there with us today and we'll tell you about a rather surprising most-successful debut music act of the last twelve months and we'll also find out who is number two on the BBC Music Sound of 2017 list, ahead of Friday's big number one reveal.

For now check out yesterday's live page for the lowdown on Raye, who made third place on that very list, while Coldplay reveal their entirely fan shot video for Amazing Day (are any of you lot in it?).

Plus discover why Mariah Carey is officially 'mortified' about what happened at her recent New York gig.

That's no way to start the New Year Mar'...